Lost ? Ask the Ants !

[pitdog]

I guess we should all carry a compass when hiking eh, I always carry a small one round my neck along with my whistle but what if we lost them !

Without a compass we have to look for indicators, never trust an indicator as gospel they are just general guides to give us an idea of our location, but in a pinch they can be very handy.

One of my favourites are wood ant mounds. Wood ants hate cold, they need as much sunlight and protection from winds as possible and as such in my part of the world they build their mounds on the South/East side of trees.

By null at 2011-02-17

By null at 2011-02-17

Tree branches are another indicator, they are often retarded by the dominant winds and so will sometimes be more prevalent on the side away from the winds. Just a little ways away from the ant mound is a good example of this....

By null at 2011-02-17

Another obvious indicator is the sun, I hiked today mid morning so the sun rose from the South/East...

By null at 2011-02-17

I wandered for a while and came across another ant mound, as you see the positioning was the same ( I apologise for the poor pic but I seemed to be being followed by an eagle and so was pre-occupied with where Snicker was in case the eagle fancied a Tiny Terror sized snack !)

By null at 2011-02-17

I also came across some rabbit fur, there was a few tufts dotted about but no sign of a carcass !

By null at 2011-02-17

A fallen tree gave me the chance to show you both the root and fronds of the tasty Licorice fern, if ya have a cold/sore throat then seek this plant out for curing drink !

By null at 2011-02-17

Oops nearly forgot the compulsary knife shot !

By null at 2011-02-17

If anyone is interested in learning more about direction finding, this is a great book !

By null at 2011-02-08

 

[WILLIAM.M]

Thanks for posting

 

[JV3]

good stuff...thanks!

 

[tek77]

Thanks for posting and for the book reference.
Gotta ask though: what's up with your obsession for cleaver shaped knives?

You design entry in Mark's forums was right on.
And my vote finally made a difference :thumbup:.

 

[pitdog]

Thanks for posting and for the book reference.
Gotta ask though: what's up with your obsession for cleaver shaped knives?

You design entry in Mark's forums was right on.
And my vote finally made a difference :thumbup:.

LOL...not sure really buddy, my next one from Mark is going to be very normal looking !

 

[Iboschi]

Ants actually count! http://www.wimp.com/antscount/

 

[TheGame]

That pic at the end is really cool. :thumbup:

 

[Shotgun]

Thanks for posting. I've noticed that there can be more foliage on the south side of trees as well.

 

[Tuxdad]

Great pics as always Pit !!

Will be checking out that book for sure.. Sounds interesting..:thumbup:

 

[newadventure]

Great post as always Pitman ... er Pitdog, yes. All those little directional signs can add up... Always appreciate the photos, too!
Fred

 

[dboles]

Interesting post.Must be nice to see an ant colony in February in BC,going to have to give that a try sometime!
Thanks
Dan'l

 

[GoNadz]

As always, thanks for sharing. That books sounds interesting. Perhaps the library has it.

-Nadz

 

[sadiejane]

thanks pit! this is the kind of stuff i like to learn and practice

 

[tknife]

Interesting stuff Pit, and great pics as always :thumbup: That licorice fern sounds tasty, wish we had some of that around here!

 

[John G]

Great information! I'm partial to the shadow compass technique we learned in the boy scouts, but it's great to add more tools to the tool kit.

 

[stewey1]

you dont cease to surprize me pit dog, awesome post, I have a few tricks of my own very similar to what you posted its great stuff

 

[_woo_]

Slight Hijack but Pit what is the last knife? I know I have seen pics of it b4 but I am just to tired and lazy to look! Thanks buddy and as always great pics and AWESOME info.

 

[pitdog]

Slight Hijack but Pit what is the last knife? I know I have seen pics of it b4 but I am just to tired and lazy to look! Thanks buddy and as always great pics and AWESOME info.

Don't be sorry buddy, the last knife is awesome !!!!:thumbup:

It's a Baby Booshway but it belongs to Mrs Pit who said I can't review it before she uses it and unfortunately she is a lot more busy that I am !

What I can say is that I was expecting not too be all that impressed by it but that couldn't be further from the truth, the knife feels awesome....It's killin me sat there when I'm wanting to slice and dice stuff....stay tuned cos this knife is gonna rock !!!!!

 

[_woo_]

Don't be sorry buddy, the last knife is awesome !!!!:thumbup:

It's a Baby Booshway but it belongs to Mrs Pit who said I can't review it before she uses it and unfortunately she is a lot more busy that I am !

What I can say is that I was expecting not too be all that impressed by it but that couldn't be further from the truth, the knife feels awesome....It's killin me sat there when I'm wanting to slice and dice stuff....stay tuned cos this knife is gonna rock !!!!!

Cool, but tell her she needs to prioritize just a little better! Us guys over here are drooling over the knife and need a review!